Celebrating Small Businesses During National Small Business Week

As the nation’s 250th birthday is being celebrated, the Working Families Tax Cuts (WFTC) deserves special recognition for expanding opportunities to live the American Dream by protecting entrepreneurs and small businesses from excessive taxation and burdensome regulations.  Following closely after Tax Day, National Small Business Week, from May 3–9, 2026, serves as a great reminder that small businesses are the strongest economic drivers, encouraging hard work and helping build communities.

Among its pro-small business provisions, the WFTC made permanent and increased from 20 percent to 23 percent the Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction, which was set to expire at the end of 2025.  Subject to income limits, it allows most self-employed taxpayers and small businesses, including S corporations, limited liability companies, and partnerships to deduct expenses related to business operations.  According to the Senate Finance Committee, the QBI deduction will create 1.2 million jobs annually and increase small-business gross domestic product (GDP) by $750 billion over the next decade.

Restoring the immediate expensing of manufacturing, domestic research, and development costs was another significant pro-main street provision in the WFTC.  The legislation also more than doubled the annual limit for immediate expenses, raising the cap from $1 million to $2.5 million.  According to the House Ways and Means Committee, these reforms are projected to increase investment in American small businesses by 7 percent and average annual employee paychecks by more than $1,600.

Finally, increasing the death tax threshold to $15 million for individuals and $30 million for couples, tying it to inflation, and making it permanent will allow small businesses to grow without owners worrying about their children or grandchildren having to sell the fruits of their labor to pay the death tax.

As of April 25, 2026, the WFTC has helped 12 million small businesses save an average of $7,000.  National Small Business Week is a good time to recognize the comprehensiveness and scale of assistance resulting from WFTC and once again acknowledge the critical role that small businesses play in moving the U.S. economy forward.